Kursa “Draudzīgais aicinājums”: Honoring Dr. Daira Cilnis

“Liels paldies!” to all who joined us for Draudzīgais aicinājums on March 1st.

Kursa: the first summer at the current West Coast Latvian Education Center, 1984, with Director Daira Cilnis

Thank you for joining us to learn more about the Kursa program and to honor Dr. Daira Cilne in words and song.

We are especially honored to announce a commemorative plaque dedicated to Dr. Daira Cilne (1944–2025). The plaque will be placed on the RKLIC church wall this summer and will be consecrated by Provost Anita Vārsberga-Pāža during Kursa Ope House on July 25 (“Viesu dienas”).

We feel Daira’s light and love everywhere, and we wanted to create a place where we can remember her and give thanks for her devoted service– as provost, Kursa director, choir conductor, teacher, friend, grandmother, and mother.

“Still– something of you will remain … ,” wrote Ojārs Vācietis.

And, this is true. Something of a person always remains. Their kindness, their words, their work, and the warmth of heart once given to others. There is also the silence in which we truly understand all that someone has shared and given us. 

Daira was a person whose presence brought a sense of assuredness and calm. Her kindness did not always need to be spoken– it revealed itself in a warm glance, gentle voice, a willingness to listen and to help. She was generous with her time, her attention, and her heart.

For many young people who gathered at Kursa each summer, she was a guide, a mentor; someone who truly listened. As a pastor, Daira inspired through faith; as a person, through her example. She lived as she spoke: with openness, with respect for every individual, and with a deep conviction that kindness always matters.

When we return to her in our thoughts, these words truly resonate:

“Something of you will remain… Somewhere in the wind, Somewhere in the earth, Somewhere in people– Your footsteps will resound.”

And indeed, Daira is with us still. In our memories and in the hearts of those who experienced her warmth and wisdom. Her spirit lives on among us and at Kursa. And if you pause there one day, feeling a sense of peace in the air, or simply thinking, it feels good to be here, perhaps in that moment, you’ll feel Daira’s presence too.

With gratitude for a life so richly given to others. With respect and love, we will remember her.

 Candlelight Service at Kursa, summer of 2025

Dr. Daira Cilne